The Geelong Cats are pleased to announce the appointment of Mick Stinear as senior coach of the Club’s AFLW program.
Stinear joins the Cats after a decade as Melbourne’s inaugural AFLW senior coach, having lead them to their historic inaugural AFLW premiership in Season 7 (November 2022).
Across Stinear’s 10 seasons, he coached 101 games, led the Demons to multiple finals series appearances and guided the team to finish inside the top four in eight of his 10 seasons in charge.
Prior to stepping into the Demons role, Stinear also coached the Oakleigh Chargers in the Under 18 TAC Cup competition where he steered the Chargers to back-to-back Premierships in 2014 and 2015 in his three seasons coaching the team.
Geelong Cats CEO Steve Hocking said Stinear was the right person to guide the AFLW program in its next phase.
“We’re thrilled to announce the appointment of Mick as the next AFLW coach of Geelong Football Club.
“Mick’s extensive experience speaks for itself, he’s had great success at the Dees building a program from its inception that has consistently been one of the top teams in the competition in the first 10 seasons.
“His ability to mentor and build meaningful relationships and his credentials in developing talent will connect with our playing group as we build the foundations for 2026 and beyond.
“We’re excited by Mick’s vision for the next evolution of our AFLW program and the growth of our team.”
Stinear said he was looking forward to this new opportunity to lead the Cats AFLW program.
“I am excited at the opportunity to build on the foundations that have been laid and to help grow and develop the team as we prepare for Season 11 and beyond.
“I will be forever grateful for having the privilege of helping to establish Melbourne's women’s team. I will cherish the relationships built over the years at the Dees and leave proud of the environment we created.
“I have a great respect for the Geelong Football Club and look forward to building on the work of former coaches Paul Hood and Dan Lowther and working closely with the staff and players to deliver a high performance program that leads to a period of sustained success.”
Stinear will commence his role with the Cats in January.
